Dr. Pamela Peeke Profile

A Pew Foundation scholar in nutrition and metabolism, Dr. Peeke is a highly regarded physician and scientist whose work has greatly advanced formal research in preventive and integrative medicine.

Ranked as one of the top physicians in America by the Consumers Research Council of America, Dr. Peeke has educated and inspired millions to take charge of their diet, overcome addictions, and manage stress.

A multiple-time TEDx presenter, Dr. Peeke is known for her vibrant entertaining style of presenting hard science and substance, making her a frequent guest consultant for Good Morning America, ABC Nightline, Today Show, CNN, Fox News, the BBC and Huffington Post Live.

Dr. Pamela Peeke is one of the most sought-after and trusted authorities on healthy living and preventive/integrative medicine. As a senior research fellow at the National Institutes of Health Office of Alternative Medicine, Dr. Peeke laid the groundwork for the research and development of scientific investigations involving stress, nutrition and fitness. A Pew Foundation Scholar in Nutrition and Metabolism, she is one of the few physicians in the country to be formally trained in nutrition science. Dr. Peeke is ranked one of America’s top doctors by the Consumers Research Council of America.

In addition to greatly advancing research in the field of preventative medicine, she’s raised nationwide awareness that diet and lifestyle are a powerful medicine. Dr. Peeke is the author of three New York Times bestsellers: The Hunger Fix, Fit to Live, Body-for-LIFE, and Fat After Forty. As a lifestyle expert for WebMD, she helped build a multimedia platform that has an audience of 90 million members.

Known for seamlessly combining substance and humor into her speeches, Dr. Peeke is an acclaimed TEDx presenter. Her insights and expertise have also been featured on Good Morning America, ABC Nightline, Today Show, CNN, Fox News, the BBC and Huffington Post Live.

Dr. Peeke has the honor of appearing in the National Institutes of Health’s “Changing Face of Medicine” exhibit on the history of women physicians at the National Library of Medicine. She is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Maryland.

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Dr. Pamela Peeke is an internationally recognized expert, physician, scientist and author in the fields of nutrition, stress, fitness and public health. On stage or in front of a camera, she combines her trademark energy, wit and humor with the latest scientific data to motivate and educate audiences of all ages to transform themselves for healthy living.

Dr. Peeke is WebMD’s lifestyle expert for their 90 million members, where she presents her multimedia lifestyle program Everyday Fitness with Dr. Pam Peeke. Serving as chief medical correspondent for nutrition and fitness at Discovery Health TV, Dr. Peeke is featured on the award winning National Body Challenge series and is the host of the Could You Survive? series, based upon her national bestselling book Fit to Live. Magazines including O, Prevention, Fitness and More feature her columns and editorials. Dr. Peeke is a regular in-studio science and health news commentator for the national and cable networks.

Dr. Peeke is a New York Times bestselling author. Her books include Fight Fat after Forty, the first consumer book describing the complex science behind the stress-fat connection and what can be done to reverse it. Based on the groundbreaking research Dr. Peeke conducted at the National Institutes of Health, this state of the art book details her holistic, well integrated approach combining science and practical tools to help consumers cope with daily stresses to finally break the stress-fat cycle for life. In Body for Life for Women and the companion Body for Life for Women Workout DVD, Dr. Peeke uses cutting edge science and a holistic and integrative program to show women how to transform their lives as well as achieve and maintain their optimal mind and body fitness throughout the decades of their life. Fit to Live, presents wellness with a survival twist and challenges her readers with the question “Are you Fit to Live – Mentally, Nutritionally, Physically, Financially and Environmentally” to survive 21st century living, from divorce to disaster?

Dr. Peeke’s newest book, The Hunger Fix: The 3 Stage Detox and Recovery Plan for Overeating and Food Addiction became a New York Times bestseller five days after launch on the Katie Couric show. This book presents the new science of food and addiction, noting the latest NIH based research showing that food addiction is real. In The Hunger Fix, Dr. Peeke presents a plan for detox off the “false fixes” or addictive food products, and a blueprint for lifelong control and recovery by switching to “healthy fixes” and reclaiming the brain’s hijacked reward center. The Hunger Fix is the first consumer book to present the science and plan and is a game changer in the field of weight management and healthy living.

Dr. Peeke serves as spokesperson for the AmericanCollege of Sports Medicine’s Exercise is Medicine global initiative. Together with the US Surgeon General, Dr. Peeke created the Surgeon General Walks for a Healthy and Fit Nation. She has been recognized by the National Library of Medicine as one of America’s leading physicians in their touring exhibition, Changing The Face of Medicine. Dr. Peeke is senior editor of the Women’s Health section of the new edition of the textbook Lifestyle Medicine.

Dr. Peeke holds the position of Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of Maryland, School of Medicine, is board certified in internal medicine, and is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians. As a Pew Foundation Scholar in Nutrition and Metabolism during her postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California at Davis and then as the first physician to serve as Senior Research Fellow at the National Institutes of Health Office of Alternative Medicine, Dr. Peeke conducted research in the newly evolving field of integrative medicine. Dr. Peeke was among the first physicians with formal training in nutrition science and while at the NIH, studied the relationship between chronic stress, nutrition, and weight gain.

An avid athlete and known as the ‘doc who walks the talk,’ Dr. Peeke is founder of The Peeke Performance Center for Healthy Living™ where she conducts her Peeke Week Retreats teaching her Peeke Performers how to transform themselves, mentally and physically, for optimal health and wellbeing.

Dr. Pamela Peeke Speaking Videos

Dr. Pamela Peeke TED Talk

In a TED Talk like no other, Dr. Pamela Peeke gets women pumped about accepting and celebrating their body in age where we see around 500 images daily of women who are sizes 0 to 2. She emphasizes being healthy, happy, and having body pride while defying “the lie” that women are supposed to be toothpicks.

While providing women with small actions they can take to shift their mentality towards their body, Dr. Peeke shares her personal journey as a 5’9” Californian with 16½-inch calves. “For the longest time I couldn’t figure out why I had these legs. I felt somewhat disassociated,” she recalls, noting that she often wondered why she didn’t have “those little stick things” like her friends.

Then, Dr. Peeke found the answer as a triathlete...and it prompted her to name her legs “Thelma” and “Louise.”

“When I’m on that cycle, we kill hills,” Dr. Peeke grins. “All those little stick people wave at you.”

Dr. Pamela Peeke TEDx Lower East Side

Dr. Pam Peeke at TEDxWallStreet

Dr. Pamela Peeke at the ISPA Conference & Expo

Dr. Pamela Peeke at the Women’s Summit

Dr. Pamela Peeke on Food Addiction - GaiamTV

Dr. Pamela Peeke TED Talk

Dr. Pamela Peeke TEDx Lower East Side

Dr. Pam Peeke at TEDxWallStreet

Dr. Pamela Peeke at the ISPA Conference & Expo

Dr. Pamela Peeke at the Women’s Summit

Dr. Pamela Peeke on Food Addiction - GaiamTV

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Dr. Pamela Peeke's Speech Descriptions

Dr. Pamela Peeke helps audiences sort through the massive amounts of conflicting information on diet, fitness, and lifestyle. The vibrant and respected physician and researcher interprets the hard science behind everyday issues like addiction, obesity, and aging, while sharing simple actions you can take to live longer healthier lives. An edutainer through and through, Dr. Peeke’s amazing chemistry with audiences ensures that participants will leave motivated, informed, and equipped to increase their health and well-being.

LONG Fight Fat After Forty: The Secrets To Losing The Midlife Belly
for Women, for Men, for Everyone
SHORT Fight Fat After Forty

Dr. Peeke’s groundbreaking research at the National Institutes of Health unlocked the mystery of the midlife belly. Declining sex hormones, a more sedentary lifestyle coupled with increasing Toxic Stress form the perfect storm for the accumulation of too much fat inside the abdomen. She created the term “Menopot” for the excess abdominal fat in women, and “Manopot” for men. Dr. Peeke reveals her trademark Mind-Mouth-Muscle program for preventing and reversing belly fat in women and men.

LONG Be Fit To Live: Master Your Mind and Body for LIFE!
SHORT Be Fit To Live Your Life!

As the first senior research fellow at the National Institutes of Medicine’s Office of Alternative Medicine, Dr. Peeke pioneered research in the mind-body sciences. While there, Dr. Peeke created the term “Integrative Fitness”, linking together mental, spiritual, nutritional and physical fitness into a New Normal for holistic wellness. As a scientist and physician, Dr. Peeke passionately presents credible, cutting edge science associated with Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

LONG Achieve Your Body For Life: The 3-point plan to
Mental and Physical Transformation
SHORT Your Body For Life: The 3-point transformation plan

As one of America’s leading fitness and nutrition experts, Dr. Peeke presents her maverick model for transforming your body and maintaining that success for life. From childhood through the senior years, Dr. Peeke demonstrates that the key to sustainable success is optimizing body composition (strong muscles and bones, minimizing fat), not stressing over scale weight. Dr. Peeke reveals her 3-point blueprint (Mind-Mouth-Muscle) for feeding and strengthening the body, while shedding body fat in a doable, accessible program for women and men.

LONG No, you don′t have to live in the gym: Deconstructing Diet Myths
and Fitness Fantasy
SHORT Deconstructing Diet Myths and Fitness Fantasy

Using her notable wit and wisdom, Dr. Peeke cuts through diet and fitness hype and myths, while providing unique pearls of wisdom based on the latest cutting edge research. Countless crunches don’t melt belly fat--- eating a leaner, protein rich dinner will. 30 minutes of intense cardio intervals will shed weight more efficiently than an hour of mild to moderate exercise. Protein and fiber fill you up and kill carb cravings. Dr. Peeke dispels the fantasies and leaves participants with tips, tools and techniques rooted in reality and guaranteed to deliver.

LONG Girth of a Nation: The Public Policy of Waistlines and Wellness
SHORT Girth of a Nation: Waistlines and Wellness

As advisor to Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin, Dr. Peeke is creating national campaigns to address the American epidemic of sedentary life, obesity and overall lack of fitness for survival. Wearing her public policy hat, Dr. Peeke is the spokesperson for the American College of Sports Medicine’s global campaign, Exercise IS Medicine. Dr. Peeke explores the exciting and challenging opportunities for consumers, private industry and public policy makers to enhance wellness in the home, the worksite and on Capitol Hill.

LONG Mastering Mental Fitness: The New Science of the Powerful, Plastic Brain
SHORT Mastering Mental Fitness

Nothing creates more fear than the thought of losing one’s mental capacity, especially after the age of 50. Dr. Peeke presents the new science of neuroplasticity, revealing how recent studies have discovered that the brain is plastic, or flexible, and continues to create new brain cells throughout life. Mastering optimal mental fitness involves working out in your cerebral gym on a daily basis, and creating new neurons that supervene over old habits. Dr. Peeke presents easy to learn mental techniques to maximize the potential of the brain throughout the aging process.

LONG Aging Mastery: Optimizing Mental, Nutritional and Physical Fitness
SHORT Ageless Youthfulness: A Mystery or Simply a Matter of Mastery

The art of optimal aging involves engaging a holistic and integrative approach to preserving and maximizing mental, nutritional and physical fitness. Dr. Peeke shows how to “redefine normal” for every decade of life, by customizing a lifestyle blueprint that effectively navigates the challenges of the aging mind and body. Using cutting edge gender and age specific science, Dr. Peeke provides the critical steps to master aging and optimize joy and satisfaction throughout the lifespan.

What People are Saying about Seeing Dr. Speak

Rating Entries

“The three most appropriate words that come to mind after your powerful Wellness Panel presentation are “veni, vidi, vici!”. ‘Who was that woman?’ was asked time and again as you are such a superb communicator of extremely useful and substantive information.” Peter L. Gilsey, Chairman and CEO, Ariba Asset Management, Inc.

“On behalf of the North Dakotans Partnering for Women’s Health and Women across our great state, thank you for being a speaker at the 2005 Women’s Health Summit-Fargo. Your participation in this event was an essential component in helping us reach our goals of educating and empowering women to take a proactive role in their healthcare. Because of your interest and assistance, we heightened women’s awareness of a variety of health issues so that North Dakotans can live longer, happier, healthier lives. For that, we are truly grateful.”Mikey L. Hoeven, First Lady of North Dakota

“On behalf of all of the WIC staff from across the State of Maryland, I want to thank you for giving the keynote address at our annual WIC Conference. Your talk was not only full of excellent, useful information, but it was motivating as well. We will work to maintain the enthusiasm that you inspired in our organization as we continue to promote healthy eating and lifestyle changes…”Jackie Marlette-Boras, RD, LD, MHS, Maryland Department of Health & Mental Hygiene

“What a wonderful contribution your lecture presentation made to our fifth annual Women’s Health Symposium. We thank you for helping us to help to improve the health of hundreds of women in our community.” Stacy M. Eisler, Deputy Director, May Center for Health, Fitness & Sport, 92nd Street Y

“I am sure you could tell from the audience’s reaction that the first word I should have used in this letter is ‘bravo’. Your presentation was truly one of the most outstanding we have heard on nutrition, obesity and physical fitness.” Patti Herlihy, President, American Medical Association Alliance, Inc.

“What can I Say? You’re the best! You added so much to the flavor of our conference. Your presentation was just the right pick-me-upper in a meeting that consisted primarily of deep subjects geared to provide insight and solutions to many of the challenges that senior-level women in government face today.” Phyllis J. Doak, Executive Director, Women Executives In State Government

Books by Dr. Pamela Peeke:

The Hunger Fix
Food Addiction is real.
So is the solution.

Our body’s built-in reward system, driven by the chemical dopamine, tells us to dothings that give us pleasure: Creative energy, falling in love, entrepreneurship—even the continued procreation of the human race—are driven by this system. Unfortunately, so is the urge to overeat.

In The Hunger Fix , Dr. Pam Peeke uses the latest neuroscience to explain how, with repeated exposure coupled with life stresses, any food can become a “False Fix” and ensnare you in a vicious cycle of food obsession, overeating, and addiction. Indeed, she shows that dopamine rushes in the body can work exactly the same way with food as with drugs like cocaine.

Luckily, this very same system can be easily rewired to reward us with a healthy, happy, and fulfilling life. The Hunger Fix lays out a science-based three-stage plan that shows us how to break our addiction to False Fixes and replace them with healthier rewards. Fun fitness activities, customized meal plans, and delicious, satisfying recipes are designed to trigger the specific neurochemical cascade that stimulates your body’s reward system, reclaims your hijacked brain, and supports your lifelong recovery. Energizing Healthy Fixes such as meditating, having sex, writing your own blog, or going for a walk on the beach–even laughing–quickly replace the junk food, couch time, and other self-destructive habits that can leave you unhappy and overweight.

Packed with practical tips, useful advice, and plenty of wit, wisdom, and inspiring stories of those who have successfully transformed their bodies, The Hunger Fix is a life changing program for anyone (of any size) trapped by food obsessions and the urge to overeat.

Body for Life for Women: A Woman′s Plan for Physical and Mental Transformation
Drawing from cutting-edge research in gender-based medicine, women′s health expert and best-selling author Dr. Pamela Peeke tailors the original Body-for-LIFE program to the unique obstacles women face. With stunning before-and-after photos and testimonials providing motivation and inspiration, Body-for-LIFE for Women features a 12-week Mind-Mouth-Muscle eating, exercise, and emotional health program for women to help them achieve optimal health during their hormonal milestones.

Fit to Live: The 5-Point Plan to Be Lean, Strong, and Fearless for LifeNew York Times best-selling author Dr. Pamela Peeke helps readers trim their waists, shed pounds, and lengthen their lives in her witty, tough-love functional fitness and lifestyle plan.

With more than 300,000 copies in print, Dr. Pamela Peeke′s New York Times bestseller Body-for-LIFE for Women has helped scores of readers transform their bodies. Her newest book shines light on the heavy weight of the 21st century lifestyle, with its fake food, desk jobs, clutter, and endless stress, and asks readers, “If your life depended on it, could you run up four flights of stairs right now? Are you Fit to Live, not only to survive, but to enjoy life?” For most people, the answer is no and they don′t know it.

Combining Peeke′s trademark in-your-face wit with heart-stopping reality checks, Fit to Live offers readers an active health/lifestyle assessment: How many pushups can they do in 2 minutes? How many servings of processed foods did they eat today? Peeke translates those results into research-based predictions of readers′ long-term prognoses and helps readers gauge just how much fat—mental, nutritional, physical, financial, environmental—to cut from their toxic lifestyles to become Fit to Live. Showing how these five core areas intertwine, Peeke offers bottom-line strategies to adapt and adjust to life′s stresses; get a stronger, leaner body; enjoy greater financial security; and create a healthier living space. Readers will become Fit to Live and lead dynamic and exciting lives, both now and for the future.

The National Body Challenge Success Program for the Whole Family
In 2005, The Discovery Health National Body Challenge helped thousands of men and women across the country remove more than 395,000 pounds of excess weight—almost to 200 tons—and nearly twice the amount that Challengers lost in 2004. Now best-selling author and Discovery Health Channel medical spokesperson Dr. Pamela Peeke provides you with all the tools, advice, and encouragement you need to reclaim your health and become a Body Challenge success story yourself.

On the 12-week program, which can be personalized to meet your specific goals, you’ll learn how to make stress reduction, proper nutrition, and exercise a top priority in your life. Stick with it and you’ll firm your muscles, burn fat, and handle stress and emotions through an integrated mind-mouth-muscle approach.

You’ll discover how your slimmed-down, toned-up body will reflect in other, more profound changes including improved health, more energy, and greater self-confidence. You can witness the evidence of the results you can achieve in the remarkable before-and-after pictures and inspiring words of participants who transformed their bodies and lives on the program. Make this is the year you become a participator instead of spectator. Are you up to the Challenge?